Monday, May 30, 2016

Watching any play requires a certain level of attention and
adaptability, but watching an absurdist, existential tragi-comedy where the
characters seem to exist in three separate but interwoven realities calls for a
whole new level of cognitive flexibility. Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern Are Dead can be parsed into so many levels of meaning that
a single exposure to the text is quite simply inadequate. Luckily, the HART
Theatre’s current production of playwright Tom Stoppard’s classic is staged
cleverly enough to provide abundant cues to shifts in perspective, and funny
enough to keep the audience thoroughly entertained. Director Peter Stein’s
fast-pacing (essential with this show) ensures that nobody will be bored;
conversely, nobody has a chance to catch everything – I left the theater
determined to find the script and read it at my leisure so that I could linger
over both the philosophical and the whimsical wordplay that decorates every
scene.

Pretty much everybody is familiar with Shakespeare’s Hamlet, so the root tale is in place. However, Stoppard’s play revolves around
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, old school chums of Prince Hamlet whose minor
roles have little effect on the outcome of Hamlet
but who, like almost all of Shakespeare’s cast, die at the end. The show opens
as Rosencrantz, the more foolishly optimistic and less introspective of the
pair, is having a remarkable run of luck – despite the odds, his coin tosses
always come up heads. The comparatively somber Guildenstern ponders the meaning
of this while they try to figure out where they are, why they have been sent
for, and what they are meant to do. The arrival of a wandering troupe of
tragedians does nothing to help – the troupe’s leader, Player, makes it very
clear that from her perspective the two men exist only to provide an audience
for the traveling actors. Ultimately,
most of the characters from Hamlet appear,
but with a sense of unreality that makes them the play within a play within a
play. Trust me - it’s a LOT more fun than it sounds. And there are pirates –
who doesn’t love pirates?

Because words are so plentiful and critical to the show,
projection, timing and enunciation are especially important. Shakespeare’s
original lines make brief appearances (in scenes between Hamlet and the other
members of the court), but the best dialogue consists of brief monologues by
Angela Van Epps (“Player”) and rapid-paced exchanges between Les Ico (“Rosencrantz”)
and Dan Kroon (“Guildenstern”). Van Epps
is eloquent, charismatic, and winningly assertive – even when we (like the two
main characters) are not quite sure what’s going on, she is reassuringly clear
about the role of the audience and the tragedians. Ico and Kroon work best
together in moments of physical comedy reminiscent of Laurel and Hardy, and
their puzzled haplessness repeatedly provides the evening’s biggest
laughs. An added bonus is the pacing and
clarity of Ico’s delivery, which ensures that none of his character’s best
material will be lost in the action.

Among the uniformly competent peripheral players, John
Ollis’ “Polonius” is particularly memorable – he captures his character’s
arrogant ignorance and is fun to watch while alive, while he is truly
unforgettable as a corpse being dragged across the stage. Blaine Vincent III
(“Hamlet”) is most effective in the “Get thee to a nunnery” scene with Ophelia
– the authenticity and power of his anger are an unexpected bonus.

Cassie Finley’s costuming is detailed and elaborate enough
to help identify characters for a potentially puzzled audience. The set design
(by Sam U. Ells – one suspects that’s an alias!) is perfect – just hanging
sheets to provide ambiguity of place and time, augmented as necessary by
rudimentary structures that suggests a stage, castle, and boat without
introducing anything that might spoil the evening with hints of literal
reality.

Despite the show’s complexity, it is terrifically accessible
– one obviously pre-teen audience member was laughing along with the rest of
us. Director Stein has found a nice balance between Keystone Kops antics and
serious existentialism, and his cast fulfills his vision nicely.

Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern Are Dead is playing at the HART Theatre, 185 SE Washington,
Hillsboro through June 19th, with performances at 7:30 on Fridays
and Saturdays and 2:00 on Sundays.

Friday, May 13, 2016

I may not be the best judge of Twilight Theater Company’s
current production of The Heidi
Chronicles – there’s a significant conflict of interest (I spent the first
part of last Thanksgiving myself stuffing myself silly with the family of one
cast member, and ended the day with dessert and a drink or two at the home of
another). Furthermore, I inhabit the bull’s-eye
of the show’s target audience, having come of age in the sixties as a bleeding
heart liberal feminist – my first vote for president, in 1972, went to an
African-American woman. Happily, there are some independent indices that attest
to the play’s excellence – most notably a 1989 Pulitzer Prize (Best Play) and a
2015 Tony for Best Revival. For now, you’ll just have to take my word for it on
the direction and cast – they are definitely up to the challenge of the script!

The Heidi Chronicles follows
Heidi Holland from the mid-1960s through the 1980s, from naïve, slightly gauche
but self-possessed high school student through a Ph.D. and faculty career as an
art historian. The heroine is at ground
zero of the nascent feminist movement – as did many of us, she begins as an
inadvertent feminist, drawn to the seemingly obvious concept that “all people
deserve to fulfill their potential.” As the show progresses, Heidi moves from
“Clean with Gene” privileged liberalism to a more radical feminism, but she is
more of a grounded spectator than a fierce warrior - never really angry enough
at men to burn her bra or anything else. Her friends are all over the map – including
the loyal but mercurial Susan, furious Fran, insipid Lisa and Lisa’s clueless
yuppie younger sister Denise. Her best male friend, the adorable Peter, turns
out to be gay (we all had our first openly gay friend back then!). She spends
two decades in an on-and-off relationship with her “bad boy,” Scoop Rosenbaum,
a smarmy, superficially radical leftist with the soul (and ultimately life) of
a conventional, aggressive entrepreneur. Along the way, Heidi sees the ideals
of her youth gradually abandoned by their most outspoken advocates, and she is
left to work through her disillusionment and find her own path to contentment.

It’s not easy to single out individual cast members for
recognition, as the ensemble is uniformly strong, but there are a few real
standout performances. First, of course,
there is Karlyn Weaver as Heidi. Weaver finds just the right combination of
vulnerability and strength, bewilderment and intelligence – we cannot help but
care about her. The scene where she throws aside any prepared script and speaks
from the heart to her high school alumnae group is a heartbreaking and powerful
illustration of her plight. Ilana Watson’s “Fran” captures the sloganeering,
nuance-free anger of the early movement with a vengeance – “you either shave
your legs or you don’t!” Lalanya Gunn (as talk show host April) is hilarious
proof that some things never change – she is as thoughtlessly self-confident and
perky as any currently syndicated news host. However, my favorite performance
is Nichols Paine as gay pediatrician Peter Patrone. He is snarky and sardonic, and maintains a
careful balance between sensitive intellectualism (acceptable) and a whiny
effeminacy (unacceptable, and liable to get him beaten up in the bad old days).
His timing, smile, and self-effacing humor make him the perfect safe male
friend, and Paine captures the role perfectly.

Music and visual representation of art are important in this
production, and the lighting and sound designers (Robin Pair and Ilana Watson)
contribute immeasurably to the continuously evolving ambience. Chris Byrne’s costumes accurately capture the
shifting fashion designs over the play’s 25-year span, helping the audience to
keep track of the decades. Director Toner presents, at least for me, one of the
most moving and well-executed shows of the season, and I hope audiences will
find their way to this wonderful corner of North Portland.

Twilight Theater Company’s The Heidi Chronicles is playing at the Performing Arts Theater,
7515 N. Brandon Avenue, Portland through Saturday, May 21st with performances
at 8 P.M. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3 P.M.

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Sometimes a trip to the theater is just for fun – no deep
themes, no profound statements about the human condition. Mask & Mirror’s
current production of Weinstock and Gilbert’s Catch Me If You Can is a perfect example – smart, engaging, light
fare for audiences of all ages. This whodunit has characters balanced nicely
between parody and drama (kudos to director Harvey Brown for this!) and enough
red herrings, twists and turns to keep the audience guessing. An added plus is
a surprise ending that leaves you going over the earlier scenes in your mind,
wondering what clues you might have missed along the way.

Based on a French play by Robert Thomas, the Mask &
Mirror version made its Broadway debut in 1965. It can be done with a single
set and requires only seven cast members, making it particularly appropriate
for community theater productions. The set-up is novel: newlywed Daniel Corban,
honeymooning in a borrowed home in the Catskills, has notified the police that
his bride Elizabeth has disappeared. The very laid-back Inspector Levine
doesn’t seem to take Corban’s plight too seriously – wives, after all, run off
all the time. A priest shows up and asks Corban if he will take his wife back,
no questions asked, and he agrees – but the woman who comes in claiming to be
his wife is a stranger. Corban cannot find any proof that she is not his wife,
leaving open for a while the question of whether he is crazy or she is a fraud.
After a couple of murders and lots of angst (mostly from Corban) the surprising
truth emerges and justice wins the day.

Benjamin Philip is an ideal candidate for the role of Daniel
– he is consistently tense and anxious, with just enough bursts of anger and
hysteria to make his instability plausible. Fred Cooprider does a masterful job
as Inspector Levine, and he gets most of the good lines, wisecracking his way
around Corban’s anxiety and playing the role of the inept but lecherous
detective while making sure the audience knows he’s actually got a lot on the
ball. Jayne Furlong (Elizabeth Corban) is sharp as a tack, and switches
smoothly from concerned wifey (when others are present) to murderous con. As
Father Kelley, Elizabeth’s apparent partner in crime, Mark Putnam has fine
timing and maintains his fake Irish accent consistently as his character shifts
from saint to sinner – and he dies really well! Perhaps the funniest character
in the show Diana LoVerso as Sydney, the hapless Jewish-momma who owns the
local diner and makes the best coffee in the Catskills.

Mask & Mirror generally compensates for their less-than
elegant location (essentially a church rec room) by building some of the best
sets in town, and this show is no exception. Brian Ollom’s set design and Cindy
Zimmerman’s set dressing are detailed and attractive – more than enough to make
us forget where we are and buy into the story without reservation. The cast of Catch Me If You Can present a thoroughly
entertaining, fast-paced evening of murder-mystery that should not be missed!

Catch Me If You Can
runs through May 22nd at “The Stage” at Calvin Church, 10445 SW Canterbury
Lane, Tigard, 97224, with shows at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2:00
p.m. on Sundays.

Monday, May 9, 2016

Bag & Baggage’s 2015-16 season brought downtown
Hillsboro two classic works of 19th century fiction, Moby Dick and Emma, both adapted to theater and presented as a “play within a
play” by a strong cast of seasoned professionals. The March production of Orson
Welles’ Moby Dick Rehearsed stripped
a ponderous work to its essence, providing a thoroughly compelling evening of
intense drama. The current production of Emma
would definitely benefit from an aggressive Wellesian culling. The show is
charming, often very funny, but at just over three hours (including
intermission) it is simply a bit too long.

The problem is not director Patrick Walsh’s pacing – there’s
just an overabundance of material in Michael Fry’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s
iconic comic novel. Despite the cast’s often fast and furious delivery of
dialogue and snappy character changes, my guest and I found ourselves glancing
at our watches as 9:00 p.m. came and went before the end of Act I.

The premise is both fun and appropriate (to Austen’s
sensibilities) – three young women, stuck indoors, find everything they need to
put on an impromptu play in a crowded and rambling attic. They drag two young
men into the game, Emma is chosen as
their vehicle, and they perch three stuffed animals at the edge of the stage as
their audience (the lion and tiger seemed to enjoy it, but I think the koala
bear fell asleep). The five manage (aided by a rather extensive collection of
old clothing and prop material stored in the attic) to portray all of the
characters in the novel. The fact that they are working directly from the book,
rather than a play script, provides both the principal strength and the main
weakness. On the plus side, the recitation of much of Austen’s dialogue
preserves the work’s original comic sensibility and period feel. On the minus
side, the frequent utilization of the novel’s narrative segments, while
necessary to clarify the story, lends a sometimes-annoying expository tone.

The five-person cast does an impressive job of breathing life
into the script. Clara-Liis Hillier (Sarah) fills but one role – that of the
overbearing, inadvertently snobbish, manipulative, self-centered but lovable
Emma. Sarah, like Emma, knows better than anyone what’s best, and Hillier
beautifully captures all of her character’s quirks and airs as well as her
puzzlement when things begin to go awry.
The other four cast members are exceedingly nimble and often hilarious
as they change parts, social classes, and sometimes genders with little more
than their bodies, voices, wigs and accessories to mark the fast-paced
character shifts. Cassie Greer (Jane) is
a wonder as she shifts from the naïve and simpering Harriet Smith to the
motor-mouthed hysteria of Miss Bates, and Arianne Jacques (Elizabeth) seems
convincingly unrehearsed as she cheerfully bobbles her transformations from
Emma’s former governess, her frenemy Jane, and her father Mr. Woodhouse. Joey
Copsey (Robert) is consigned to the role of straight man (and woman) – he quietly
shines as the restrained and intelligent Mr. Knightly. Finally, you can’t miss
Andrew Beck (William); his height and good looks make him equally memorable as
the foppish Mr. Churchill, the self-righteous Mr. Elton, and the sturdy but
unexciting famer, Mr. Martin.

The set is impressively crowded with antiques, chests, and
cast-off luggage to create both the feel of an attic and the ambience of
Austen’s 1815 setting. Designer Melissa Heller’s costumes are remarkably
detailed, from Hillier’s thoroughly modern shorts and tights to the awkward
early costumes and finally, as the characters are fully fleshed out, elaborate
and authentic period attire.

Emma is an
impressive accomplishment, despite its length – forewarned, audiences who
fortify themselves with a cup of coffee rather than a pre-show glass of wine
will leave the theater content and, like the stuffed tiger and the lion,
wide-awake and entertained.

Bag & Baggage’s Emma
is playing at Hillsboro’s Venetian Theatre, 253 E. Main Street, through May 29,
with performances Thursday
through Saturday at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:00pm.

Thursday, May 5, 2016

In community theater reviews, “farce” or “melodrama” can
often be found immediately preceding the words “train wreck.” Combine and
augment these words, as in “melodramatic slapstick farce,” and the chance of
getting a decent show drops to vanishingly slim – but Beaverton Civic Theatre
has beaten the odds with an utterly delightful production of Around the World in 80 Days. The witty
script, talented cast, and a remarkable director combine to produce one of the
funniest shows I’ve seen in years.

When Jules Verne wrote the original novel in 1873, it was
almost unimaginable that Englishman Phileas Fogg would be able to
circumnavigate the globe in only 80 days. Playwright Mark Brown has turned
Verne’s adventure story into a cheerful send-up of both colonial and theatrical
manners and mores, and director Susan Giberson has ensured that the audience
and actors derive equal enjoyment from the production. The eight-person cast is neatly split – half
play a single part throughout, and the other half fill 30+ smaller roles with a
controlled frenzy of quick-change (of clothing, manner, and accents). The set
evolves almost as quickly as the cast – in two acts, facilitated by minimalist
props, we see London, Suez, Bombay, Calcutta, Hong Kong, Yokohama, San
Francisco, the American West, New York, and Liverpool before returning to
London. In Giberson’s hands, the resulting show is kind of Monty Python with
touches of Marx Brothers, Three Stooges, and Inspector Clouseau.

Like her male counterparts, Priscilla Howell (Aouda) gives
her all to the physical comedy of the role. Within the span of a few weeks she
is illogically transformed from a delicate and distressed jewel of the East to
an articulate and elegant young lady suited to be Fogg’s bride – within the
context of the show it all makes perfect sense.

Among the other four cast members (simply identified as “Actor”
in the cast list) Allen Denison demands special recognition. As the show’s
narrator, he carefully maintains a seriocomic expression but is frequently on
the verge of laughter. His sparkling eyes and occasional grin provide subtle
breaks in the “fourth wall,” welcoming the audience as partners in the fun.
Another lighthearted touch comes from the sets/props – a few boxes, a slab of
cardboard, the omnipresent clock, and (my personal favorite) a ladder and flexible
dryer duct to create the hilarious Kiouni, a war elephant whose gait is so
steady that one can serve tea while mounted atop her massive frame.

Sandi King’s costume design ranges from the detailed
authenticity required for Fogg and Aouda to the simple touches required for
rapid transformations (sometimes on stage) of the supporting cast. A special
shout out also to stage manager Lisa Boudry and her backstage crew – I’ve seen
the space behind the proscenium, and it is nothing short of miraculous that
they are able to keep things moving smoothly given the fast pacing and
complexity of the show.

Beaverton Civic’s Around
the World in 80 Days will make you laugh (a lot). While one could delve for
deeper themes, and find them, my personal recommendation is that you go simply
for an unabashedly enjoyable couple of hours watching a truly funny show.

Around the World in 80
Days runs through Saturday, May 14th at the Beaverton City
Library Auditorium, 12375 SW Fifth Street, Beaverton, with performances at 7:30
p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2:00 p.m. on Sundays.